Coker: Leptolegnia from North Carolina 263 



the extension of a single sporangium into a number of adjoining 

 branches. In Fig. I is shown such a sporangium that was ob- 

 served before and during the discharge. All the spores emerged 

 from the tip of one of the branches (at a in the figure) and the 

 spores at the tips of the other branches had to travel all the way 

 down these and out at a. 



De Bary does not mention the shape or behavior of the spores, 

 but I found them to exhibit some remarkable peculiarities. In 

 nearly all cases they emerge from the sporangium much drawn 

 out, as long, more or less cylindrical rods, with the two cilia 

 attached to the center on one side. As soon as they escape, the 

 two ends of the rod begin to fold backward, away from the cilia, 

 and fuse as they go, until by complete fusion they lose their 

 identity and form a pear-shaped spore with the cilia near the tip, 

 and the long axis at right angles to the original rod. By killing 

 the spores during emergence they were caught in all stages of 

 this transformation and drawn to illustrate the process, as shown 

 in Fig. 5 ; in which a shows several spores that were killed in the 

 sporangium. They become more elongated as they pass out and 

 on emergence have the shape shown in b or c. 



The dimensions of the oogonia were not given by De Bary, 

 but I find them to be 30/x or 40/z in diameter, and essentially 

 spherical except where modified by slight protuberances to meet 

 the antheridia. Judging from the figures, the oogonial branches 

 as seen by De Bary were shorter than I found them to be, but 

 in other respects not different. Two, three, or even more 

 antheridia to the oogonium were common in my material. In 

 one case I counted five. More than two are not mentioned by 

 De Bary. The antheridial branches are generally borne as 

 rather short ofifshoots from a slender main branch that shows a 

 marked tendency to twine about the larger female branches 

 (Figs. 2 and 3), but they may terminate a long branch. They 

 are always of diclinous origin. 



The transference of material from antheridium to oospore was 

 left in doubt by De Bary, and I have not seen the actual passage 

 of such material. The evidence however is convincing that ferti- 

 lization does take place. The antheridium is full of protoplasm 

 when it is cut off, and is empty a little later; and the amount of 



